Attack On Titan- Nature vs Nurture
by DarkSenses
Summary: Ichiru is a titan shifter. Before, he would kill humans without a second thought. After a meeting with a Survey Corps Squad, will socializing with humans change his mind? Warning: I don't own Attack On Titan
1. Fall of Shaginshina

_Author's note:_

 _The main character's name is Ichiru, he is a titan shifter. His age is 18 and he has black hair down to his shoulders and it covers his face. He's 174 centimeters tall (5.7 feet). Ichiru's eye color is an icy blue. His parents died from titans early on so he doesn't remember his last name and a lot of other things from his childhood. There will be a run ins with Eren, Mikasa, or Armin and other characters. This takes place during when the Colossal Titan kicked down Wall Maria. Regular titans don't attack Ichiru even though he is a titan shifter. I have only watched season 1 nor have I read any of the manga (if you spoil something then you deserve to die). On that happy note, enjoy the story!_

 **Fall of Shaginshina (Ichiru)  
**

My cave overlooked Wall Maria and I could tell from the amount of titans surrounding it that something was happening. There was an electricity to the air. I saw him, a titan larger than any I had ever seen, he was barely taller than Wall Maria. The familiar steam of regeneration blocked him from my view, I ran as fast as I could until I was only meters from the wall. At 15 meters high in titan form, the wall still towered high above me. In rare excitement I stared eagerly at where the titan had been, he was gone with a ragged hole in Wall Maria in his place. The crowd of titans surged through the hole devouring any humans they found, in moments the air filled with the intoxicating smell of human flesh. Instinct won and I lose myself in a sea of red, gorging on the easy meat.

 **Survey Corps**

A few days later, a squad from the Survey Corps rode near my cave, a group of 6, I could smell their fear from here. The sun was setting when they camped in the forest. I followed them as a human, better that they don't mistake me for a threat. Some were collapsed on their sleeping bags while others were around the fire laughing and talking. The shadows blended with my dark clothes, it would be basically impossible for any of them to see me. I watched them laugh, how can they laugh when they know that they can die at any moment? One of them shifted to swing an arm over another and I could see a pot of stew hanging from the fire. Food. It had been ages since I had gotten regular food. Human flesh only tasted good as a titan but it kept me from starving. I leaned a little too far into the light, one of them push me down and I felt the cool touch of metal at the nape of my neck. "Who are you? Why aren't you behind one of the walls?" The one who was holding me down asked. Instead of replying I looked down at the dirt, the smell of food was almost unbearable, my stomach growled. A woman laughed, "Hiroshi, he's clearly just hungry, let's save the questions until after he eats."

When I'm on the second bowl Hiroshi asks in a calmer tone, "what is your name?" Suddenly the soup tasted bland and the piece of potato fell down my throat leaving it dry. "Ichiru," I try to keep the answers as short as possible. "Why aren't you behind the walls? Hiroshi asks, from the way his eyes are digging into me, it would be a bad idea to lie, so I answer vaguely. "I don't live behind the walls," my voice flat. "Why not? It's safe," the woman wonders. "Safe? Like how Shaginshina was safe?" I take a breath to calm myself, I'm more angry at myself for killing humans. The squad members exchange glances, they can't deny it, the military police brigade was completely unqualified to handle the mass hordes of titans. "Ichiru, the walls are the safest place for us from the titans" a younger man said, "I'm more interested in how you're alive outside the wall. We're well trained but we're dead if we drop our guard for even a moment." Realizing he had killed the conversation he said, "well, you're allowed to stay with us for a while." Afterwards it was just an awkward silence.

A few hour later everyone was asleep, the moon was bright and full, silvery light reflected off the leaves. The only sounds were of crickets and the light breathing of the squad, it was strangely peaceful. I stealthily rolled out of my borrowed sleeping bag, moving back towards my cave. It was better that I leave, they were starting to ask questions that I didn't want to answer. 20-30 meters away I slowed to a walk, a familiar voice said, "where are you going?" I turn around.

He had brown hair while his eyes were hazel. The green from the Survey Corps cloak brought out his eyes. Despite being in the Survey Corps his skin was barely tanned. I hadn't had a chance to study him because he went scouting after I stopped answering questions. "I'm leaving," I say steadily, looking into his eyes. Instead of stopping me he just stood there, I turned around and kept walking. The land was extremely flat but I'll be long gone before anyone else from the squad can find me.

I don't know how long I was walking before I heard it, a scream piercing the peace of the night. There could be no one else out here, so that meant it was from the squad I just left. No, they're not my responsibility, I don't even know them, they wouldn't be out here if they weren't qualified. "We're well trained but we're dead if we drop our guard for even a moment," the words of a man whose name I didn't even learn came back to me. Despite my reassurances, I was listening acutely for any sounds coming from that direction. But it was the constant chirping of crickets, unrelenting moonlight, and absence of human sounds that broke me. Before I could even think it through thoroughly I was running into the inky shadows of the forest. Please be alive. Please be alive. I screamed in my head, the beating of my heart growing louder and faster. The wind whipped at my skin, I ignored the burn from my muscles and embraced the cool, night air. The Survey Corps cloak I had borrowed were extended like wings as I ran.

Ducking under a branch I recognized the clearing in the forest where they had been sleeping. It was deserted, sleeping bags and travel equipment strewn about like a hurricane had blown through, or a titan. There was blood on some of the bags but nothing distinctly human yet. Following a path of crushed grass, bent branches, and broken twigs. Sounds of metal and roaring made me move faster, until I had reached another clearing. The sight was saddening. The titan picked up the woman who had offered to let me eat with them and pinched her legs between his thumb and index finger. Then he put his other hand around her head, and like it was a toy he was playing with, he ripped her head from her body. Popping the head in his mouth, I watched him move his jaw back and forth as if savoring it.

How can something just destroy a human life like that? How could I? I was no better, I didn't even know how many I had killed back at Shaginshina, how many people mourned them? There was nothing left of them except memories, how many people did she watch die? How many people have died and been forgotten? "I'm sorry," I gasp, how many more people will I have to watch die? I push down my memories, the past is the past, my parents are dead, there isn't heaven, they aren't looking down at me judging. A cry of distress, the titan had Hiroshi in the palm of his hand, he was studying him as if figuring out a creative way to eat him. NOT AGAIN! I was weak from hunger, but I had a goal. Protect Hiroshi. I take out a small knife from the inside of my cloak, gritting my teeth I slash it across my arm.

 **2nd Mission (Hiroshi Nagao)**

My 2nd time away from the walls. After Wall Maria fell they decided to send 20% of the population in a suicidal attempt to reclaim Shaginshina. Before it felt crowded, they kept having to go on food shortages. There were so many starving, homeless people on the streets. Now, it feels empty, there's a hole in the population, there's another horror to add to a history of blood and death. I had to get away, because everywhere I went, I saw a ghost of what happened in every person's face, my own probably told the same story.

The squad had 5 members (yours truly as the leader), our mission was to continue to map a forest near Wall Maria. On the first night I was scouting for titans when I saw a shape cloaked in shadows near the fire. Once I had it pinned down I realized it was a human, but what was a human doing so far from the wall? He simply said that he didn't live in a district. My only conclusion was that he was lying, but that didn't explain what he was doing so far from the wall. I tried to coax details from him but he fell silent, his eyes had the same haunted look that I tried to escape from. Angrily I left to scout but after an hour of venting my anger out on trees, I was exhausted. Junko was awake so she agreed to take my spot for an hour, I could tell that she was still thinking about Ichiru saying that the walls weren't safe.

I was standing on a bell tower near where i lived in the Trost District, I watched as Titans ran around eating everyone, ripping their limbs off or swallowing them whole. Despite my best efforts, I couldn't move or yell, the titans completely ignored me. Then one titan stalks towards me, grabbing me off the bell tower and looking at me before dangling me over its mouth. I was still completely frozen, the pressure lessened and I was falling into a pit of darkness, the only light was a reflection of the sun from his teeth and then it was gone. I was alone in the dark.

It was still pitch black but I could move, something prodded my left shoulder so I punched out blindly, I was rewarded with a surprised cry of pain. "Hiroshi, I would yell at you except..." Junko paused for a yawn, "I'm too tired to, anyway it's your turn." After a thorough sweep I resolved to scout again after 15 minutes or so went by. There wasn't anything to do and I couldn't afford to fall asleep. I decided to check in on Ichiru, his sleeping bag was empty but still warm, he had left it recently, probably between scouting shifts. After a few minutes I concluded that he wasn't going to relieve himself. I had almost given up looking for him on the 2nd sweep when I saw him quite a distance away in the grassland. It wasn't hard to catch up because he wasn't going very fast, when he slowed down I decided to ask. "Where are you going?" He replied, "I'm leaving," even after Kaito told him that he could stay with us. I was going to stop him, bring him back for the Military Police Brigade to decide what to do with him. No, our lives are filled with sadness until a titan kills us, if this is how he wanted to live his life then who was I to stop him?

On my way back I kept thinking about Ichiru, what if he gets killed out there? Where did he live? A scream tore through my thoughts, titans! I sprint as fast as I can, please... please don't let anyone be hurt. There were 2 titans, one was finishing a squad member off. She noticed me and tried to grab me, I used my 3D maneuvering device to get behind her, she's too slow and I'm about to cut the nape of her neck when her hand comes out of nowhere and slams me into the ground. Pain races through my body. But I was able to get into a tree before she brought her hand down on the spot where I was only a moment ago. I caught glimpses of what the other titan was doing. He had Junko cornered, since she had just been sleeping she lacked her 3D maneuvering device, Kaito was able to get the titan to follow him through the forest away from Junko leaving a path of destruction in their wake. I finished off the titan and looked up to see the titan eating Kaito's remains.

Tears threatened to sting my eyes, this was no time to break down. He had turned his attention back to Junko now, she had been trying to hinder the titans movements for me to finish him off too. Her eyes shone with tears, he grabbed her and ripped her head from her body, I position myself behind him and am about to slice the back of his neck when he grabs me.

I was only a few feet away from his mouth and teeth dripping with blood and saliva. Like in my nightmare, I couldn't move, I could only watch his tongue move over his teeth from right to left. He swung me over his mouth and I felt the pressure begin to loosen. A flash of lightning and then I closed my eyes.


	2. Humans Are the Same

**Darkness (Hiroshi Nagao)**

My mother had died giving birth to me and my father left my brother and I for a young woman half as old as he was. Feeling the air around me, the absence of any presence, it was something I was used to, being alone. As one of the Military Police Brigade in Shaginshina, brother was one of the many who died but the few who had sacrificed their lives to save others. Little did I know that whatever lives brother could've saved were probably killed off on a suicidal mission to reclaim Wall Maria. My brother took care of me when I was younger, he had joined the Military Police Brigade so that he would have enough money to feed us even thought he wanted to become a doctor but school would've taken too much time and money.

A pale, almost translucent hand grabbed me, it was a titan hand. The titan then waited for the other titan to lunge for me and he used his other hand to push the other titan's face into the ground. Trees shook, the ground was overturned, the hand around me was loose enough for me to breath easily, but escape would've been impossible. In the same fluid movement, the titan holding me slammed his foot on to the other titan's exposed neck. Why did one titan attack another titan? Am I going to die? I stared at his blue eyes, they looked so alive, intelligent even. He lowered me on to the floor, I was too shocked to move, he kneeled in front of of me. Exposing the nape of his neck, the titan closed his eyes. Titan steam spread everywhere, I put my arm over my eyes, it was hot and as thick as fog.

When it cleared the massive titan had its face in the dirt, if I had been a few more meters to the left then he would've crushed me. Something was emerging from the nape of the titan's neck. Titan meat snapped, a human with his arms outstretched fell backwards, there were horrible burn marks around his eyes. He looked familiar. Lying on the grass he was looking up at the sky, it was Ichiru.

Half an hour passed, I had salvaged as much as I could from the camp, my goal was to get back to the districts and report on what had happened. It was a long shot, but the only choice I had. Anyone else would've left Ichiru to the titans and set out for the wall right away, but a nagging instinct told me that he wouldn't hurt me. I still don't understand why he was inside the titan but I knew that he had come back even though he had been leaving. Not only that but he came back and saved my life, I don't understand how but he did. The fire was starting to die out, hesitant as I was to leave Ichiru I needed to get more wood or I would be alone in the dark with an unconscious Ichiru.

When I got back, he was gone, it was like he had been a dream. A ghost, he was certainly pale enough to be one. I'll remember him, the sadness in his eyes, because they'll join my brother and squad members in haunting my nightmares.

 **Alone (Ichiru)**

It was still dark, fire next to me was a hotbed of coals, I touch around my eyes. All traces of the burns had healed, I distinctly remember killing the titan and holding Hiroshi in my hand, so where was he? I tried to ignore the truth, that he had left me, at least he hadn't tried to kill me, I thought he was better than other humans, I guess I was wrong. It was quiet again, silently I headed out towards the direction of Wall Maria, I resolved that I should forget Hiroshi. Better that than to remember how imperfect and cruel humans could be.

 **My Cave (8 Months Later)**

"What are you doing here?" The village leader's nose wrinkled in disgust, "shouldn't I be asking you that question?" The village leader grunted, he clearly didn't understand what I was asking, his son remarked, "I think that Ichiru believes that he is a caveman." "I don't, I just want to know what you are doing here after I said that I didn't want to talk to any of you ever again," I said, my voice even. "Straight to business ehh?" He nodded, contemplating his next words, "we need your help..." I looked up from twiddling my thumbs, "WHAT?" "You heard me," he snarled, I almost danced with glee, the village _leader_ was asking for my help! Then I remembered, turning down a request would mean that every titan shifter would become my enemy, I'd be lucky to survive one day without a life or death situation. He laid out his plan, I was supposed to join the Survey Corps and become a Captain within a few years. After that they'll start sending young titan shifters from the village to train, the plan was that with enough shifters in the wall, they will be able to destroy the wall and kill all the humans inside. It wasn't a bad plan, I ignored the small voice saying that I'd be killing Hiroshi and humans like him, humans were cruel. "I'll do it," the village leader looked slightly surprised that smirked, "you have one day to finish any..." he waved his hand at my small belongings scattered aroung the cave, "loose ends." They both bit down on there hands simultaneously and jumped out of the cave, the titan steam finally cleared half a minute later to reveal 2 titans running off in the direction of the village. What a mess I had gotten myself into.

 **Enlisting (1 Day Later)**

"So you want to join the Survey Corps?" The recruiter smirked, "well, you're rather old to start training now but if we see you're not bad then we just might let you join." I try to resist rolling my eyes at his arrogance. Gritting my teeth I thank him, he led me further into the recruitment office, after a few turns along long corridors we reached a training room. Shouts, cries of pain, and curses echoed off the walls as we walked into the room. The walls were wood while the floor was a sort of stone, tiny rectangular windows ran along the very tops of the walls. A man around the same age of my recruiter grinned, clapped his hands together, then shouted. "We have someone challenging Amon!" We stepped onto a platform raised about a foot off the ground, the platform was made of wood but it would still hurt if I fell on it as I moved up and down to test its buoyancy. Someone tossed us both wooden practice swords, they were similar to the ones I would use to kill titans. Amon asked something but I didn't hear, "what?" He looked angry, as if I was pretending not to hear him, "I said... ARE YOU READY!?" The second I nodded he took a defensive stance at me, I took my own stance and someone counted down from 10.

The first attack was a downward slash, I was only able to dodge just in time by grabbing his shirt with both my hands and throwing him off balance while falling painfully on my right shoulder. Amon got up from the floor, his pale face blotched red from fury, now I had enraged the bull. Instead of giving us both a second to breathe he lunged at me swinging his sword blindly. A blow that would've caught my cheek I blocked with my sword, we ended up interlocked, he had me at an advantage, I was weak from being malnourished. There was no way to get more leverage on him and Amon kept pushing with all his weight and strength downwards, there was only one thing left to do. I swept my leg at him and succeeded in knocking him off his feet, before he could re-position his legs under him I brought my elbow in his stomach. Extending my arm so that he fell on his back and my sword's point touched his throat, despite how much I wanted to make fun of him, in order to get a high rank I would need friends. "Wow, you're _really_ good," the lie came out of my mouth smoothly but even so he frowned, "you still beat me, so I can't be that good if I got beat by a new kid." "Yeah, but I've been practicing since I was 6," this was a lie but it comforted him. "If that's the case then I'll recommend you for the advanced classes, no point taking the beginner classes if you already know how to handle a sword." It was too easy to manipulate humans, they bored me.

 _Author's Note: Junko is a character from another anime called Nana that I stopped watching. Since I am american, I don't know Japanese names so I just went with that name. I used a random japanese name generator for Hiroshi's name._


	3. Postponement

_Author's Note: I apologize but I will be discontinuing this, probably for only a couple of months._


End file.
